Gun-charging mechanism



Nov. 22, 1949 c. D. KNOWLTON GUN-CHARGING MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet l Original Filed Nov. 30,

[I'IUBI'ITOP Cutler D. Knew/Zion,

Nov. 22, 1949 -CHARGING MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed NOV. 1'50, 1944 Fig. 3. s20

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Fig. 5.

Patented Nov. 22, 1949 UNITED STATES T OFFICE GUN CHARGING MECHANISM Original application November 30, 1944, Serial No. 565,939. Divided and this application October 24, 1945, Serial No. 624,303

1 Claim.

This invention relates to meanswhereby a machine-gun may be charged by the gunner if it becomes jammed and the breech-bolt fails to recoiLit more particularly involving a selective charging operation forany one of a plurality of guns.

An object of the invention is to enable the gunner, without complicating the system by the introduction of power from an external source, to charge any one of plural guns by direct manual action. I attain this object by combining with a plurality of guns and their support a plurality of charging members, which may consist of levers, mounted for movement upon the support and each of which members is individual to one of the guns, and a movable charging member, which may also be a lever and common to the individual members, together with means associated with each individual member and manually operable to arrange any one of said individual members for charging the corresponding gun during movement by the common member. Thus, through a simple act performed at any one of the guns, a single member, operated in the same manner for all the guns, may be utilized to charge any one selected. The means which prepares one of the individual charging levers for its operation, preferably consists of a lever-portion movable by the gunner into position for engagement with the breech-bolt of the corresponding gun. This engagement may be with a projection from the breech-bolt, and herein the movable lever-portion is shown as provided with a projection which is not only movable by the gunner into active chargins engagement with the breech-bolt-projection, but also is movable out of engagement therewith to terminate automatically the charging action.

The present application is a division of that filed in my name in the United States Patent Ofiice on November 30, 1944, and bearing Serial No. 565,939, now Patent No. 2,457,242, granted December 28, 1948. A second division having the same filing date as the present application relates to a chair to be used by the gunner.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating a single embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 1 shows, in side elevation, a portion of the gun-carrying wall of a turret, there being associated with the guns thereon my improved charging mechanism;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line II-II of Fig. 1; and

Figs. 3, 4 and 5 are enlarged sectional details on the lines III-III, IV-IV and V-V, respectively, of Fig. 1.

On a housing H carried by a supporting wall casing of each gun the usual bolt g reciprocates.-

If the breech-bolt fails to receive its normal movement of recoil, the gunner, or a second man, must produce this 'to give the succeeding loading and firing cycle. There is fulcrumed at 164 on the Wall es a lever I68, normally retracted by a tension-spring 118. The lever is arranged for manual actuation to give a counterclockwise movement, such actuation being considered either to comprehend direct operation by hand or by the foot applied to a treadle H0. The lever is joined by a link 3|!) to one arm of a bell-cranklever 3 I 2 fulcrumed upon the inside of the turretwall. To the second arm of the lever is connected a vertical bar 3I4 pivoted to an inner arm 318 of each of two bell-crank-levers 3 l6 fulcrumed upon the inner wall of the housing 1| above the respective guns and individual thereto. Each lever 3l6 has a second arm 320, there being an intermediate tubular hub. The length of this hub diifers, because the lower guns are farther out from the turret-wall. Each of the arms 320 has at its outer side a longitudinal recess, in which is an arm 322 fast upon a spindle 324 turning in the hub. An expansion-spring 326 normally forces the arm 322 against the inner wall of the recess, and the inner end of the spindle projected through the lever 3l6 to provide a finger-piece 328. Because of the lengths of the lever-hubs, the arrangement of the spring 326 is difierent at the upper and lower guns, though the action is the same in each case. As illustrated in Fig. 3, the spring of each of the upper guns is between the outer end of the spindle 324 and an abutment 330 furnishing a portion of the housing ll. Fig. 4 shows the spring for one of the lower guns, as interposed between an enlarged finger-piece 332 at the end of the spindle 324 and a shoulder 334 within the long hub of the lever 3H5. In each case, the arm 322 has a terminal 336 clamped in place by a screw 338, so the vertical position of a horizontal extension 340 of the terminal may be adjusted with respect to a hook 342 on the breech-bolt of the corresponding gun (Fig. 5). The extension 349 has an arcuate surface 344, which is hooked oppositely to that of the breech-bolt. Normally the hook 344 lies just inside and clear of the hook 342, as the breech-bolt reciprocates during dis charge of the gun. When, however, the fingerpiece of the spindle is forced out by the man within the turret, the surface 344 is carried into alinement with the breech-bolt-hook, the spindle-arm 322 still lying within the recess in the arm 320. Now, if the lever I68 is operated, both the corresponding levers 3; will be turned. The movement of one will be idle, but the other, the fingerpiece of which has been actuated, will turn the arcuate surface 344 downwardly and rearwardly against the hook 342, imparting to the breechbolt its movement of recoil. The interengagement of the hooked members will, during this action, be maintained independently of pressure upon the finger-piece. This will continue until the breech-bolt has rached the point of full recoil. As the active lever 316 travels on to its extreme position, the surface 344 will pass beyond the breech-bolt-hook, freeing itself from this, so the breech-bolt may complete the loading cycle under the influence of its counter-recoil-spring. The lever is returned by the spring 326 to its normal position, with the surface 344 at the inner side of and clear of the hook. The treadle having been retracted by its spring 118, the charging mechanism is ready for another operation.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

In a gun charging mechanism for any number of a plurality of guns, each gun including a recip-- rocating breechbolt; an actuating member, movable by an operator, adapted to charge any one of the guns, a lever corresponding to each gun, each lever having an arm connected to the actuating member and an arm formed in two sections, one movable upon the other and having a. projection adapted for engagement with a portion of the breechbolt, means acting upon the movable arm section for normally holding the arm projection out of the path of the breechbolt portion and means for manipulation by the operator to shift the movable section and carry its projection into the path of the breechbolt portion.

CUTLER D. KNOWLTON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Germany May 19, 1939 Number Number 

